Beebalm – Native Plant of the week

This week we’re looking at some members of the Monarda genus, a group of herbaceous perennial plants in the same family as mints. Though there are 25 recognized species, all native to North America, let’s delve deeper into two of the species that are most relevant to New York state.

The most widespread and common species under the “beebalm” umbrella are M. didyma or scarlet beebalm, and M. fistulosa, often known as wild bergamot. M. didyma is responsible for the brilliant red or burgundy flowers that are popular in gardens.

Red beebalm flowers

M. fistulosa has several varieties with a range of purple shades like this one. 

Light purple beebalm flowers

Many cultivated beebalms are hybrid cultivars of these two species. Beebalms typically flower in spring and summer, and if thoroughly deadheaded, may even produce a second round of blooms in the fall. Here in the Pollinator Garden at the Extension Learning Farm, we have some Monarda didyma of the cultivated variety ‘Jacob Cline’ which bloomed last year from June 23 – July 30. We also have a tall pink-flowering beebalm (possibly a hybrid) which finished blooming a bit earlier in July, and a shorter purple-flowering one which bloomed June 10 – July 10. 

Beebalm was used in many forms by Native Americans and early colonists, for medicinal and culinary purposes. The leaves and flowers are completely edible, and can be used fresh in salads and as a garnish, or can be made into an herbal infusion, earning it another common name: “Oswego tea”. Read more Beebalm – Native Plant of the week

Common Evening Primrose – Native Plant of the Week

Welcome to our new summer series about the beautiful and essential native plants in our midst with Community Horticulture Educator Erica LaFountain and St. Lawrence University intern Amalia Kanitz. Each week we’ll give a peek into what makes these featured plants amazing.

Evening primrose, or Oenothera biennis, is a leafy-stalked biennial native to much of the United States and Canada. Some other names for it include weedy evening-primrose, German rampion, hog weed, King’s cure-all, and fever-plant.

It gets the “evening” name because the flowers of plants in this family open near dusk and remain open through the night, then mostly close by midday. This makes it great for nocturnal pollinators, as well as diurnal (daytime) ones.

The pollinators evening primrose attracts include bats, many native bees, hummingbirds, and 19 species of butterflies and moths which use this as a host plant for their caterpillars. A particularly notable one is the Primrose Flower Moth, so named because evening primrose is the only plant that hosts its larvae.

Pink primrose flower moth in yellow evening primrose flower
Primrose Flower Moth, Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

The flowers of evening primrose only last a few days individually, but it can bloom from early summer into autumn in the North Country. At the Extension Learning Farm’s pollinator garden, we have a thriving planting of sundrops, also in the Oenothera genus. It bloomed last year from June 6 through July 11 with the peak bloom in late June.

The pollinator garden at CCE, with many vibrant clumps of perennial flowers
At the Extension Learning Farm the sundrops steals the show in late June. This clump has quadrupled in size in two years!

Read more Common Evening Primrose – Native Plant of the Week

Spring wild plant tasting tour with Pat Banker

Pat Banker grew up in the Adirondacks with the knowledge that there’s food all around us in nature. In her family, using plants for food and medicine was a common practice, and she has made it her life’s work to bring people of all ages into that world through teaching, but more importantly, through preparing and eating wild foods with others. “You can tell people that roasted dandelions smell like brownies until you’re blue in the face, but until you’ve smelled it for yourself, you don’t really believe it.”

CCE of St. Lawrence County has now hosted two of Pat’s “tasting tours,” one in fall that was focused on roots, and the recent spring one, in which the group tasted and gathered mostly greens. Pat started the class by showing the group her impressive collection of wild plant books, and starting some roasted dandelion tea to steep (and yes, it did smell like brownies!)

Wild plant books

Pat then led the group outside and within feet of the door, found around ten edible plants. They included pineapple weed, wild carrot, common plantain, primrose, dandelion, thistle, and shepherd’s purse. Ranging farther afield, Pat introduced the group to yellow dock, stinging nettles, red clover, boadleaf plantain, milkweed, mullein, burdock and wild leeks (“ramps”).

Read more Spring wild plant tasting tour with Pat Banker